Silence Therapeutics (NASDAQ:SLN) Shares Gap Up – Here’s Why

Silence Therapeutics PLC Sponsored ADR (NASDAQ:SLN) shares gapped up before the market opened on Monday . The stock had previously closed at $11.95, but opened at $16.70. Silence Therapeutics shares last traded at $16.7930, with a volume of 7,146,276 shares.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on SLN shares. HC Wainwright reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $75.00 price objective on shares of Silence Therapeutics in a research note on Wednesday, June 17th. Cantor Fitzgerald initiated coverage on shares of Silence Therapeutics in a research note on Wednesday, June 24th. They issued an “overweight” rating on the stock. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Silence Therapeutics in a research report on Friday, July 17th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have issued a Buy rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $75.00.

Silence Therapeutics Stock Performance

The company’s 50 day moving average price is $9.31 and its 200 day moving average price is $7.18. The company has a market cap of $761.89 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -10.17 and a beta of 1.39.

Silence Therapeutics (NASDAQ:SLN) last announced its earnings results on Monday, August 10th. The company reported ($0.27) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.14) by ($0.13). Silence Therapeutics had a negative return on equity of 105.34% and a negative net margin of 8,943.86%. As a group, analysts predict that Silence Therapeutics PLC Sponsored ADR will post -1.08 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Silence Therapeutics

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of SLN. Boothbay Fund Management LLC boosted its stake in Silence Therapeutics by 1.0% in the second quarter. Boothbay Fund Management LLC now owns 252,421 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,464,000 after purchasing an additional 2,409 shares in the last quarter. Massar Capital Management LP acquired a new stake in shares of Silence Therapeutics in the second quarter valued at $115,000. UBS Group AG increased its stake in shares of Silence Therapeutics by 34.5% in the third quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 307,363 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,595,000 after buying an additional 78,854 shares in the last quarter. Two Sigma Investments LP raised its holdings in shares of Silence Therapeutics by 6.6% in the third quarter. Two Sigma Investments LP now owns 63,247 shares of the company’s stock valued at $328,000 after buying an additional 3,935 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Citadel Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Silence Therapeutics in the third quarter valued at about $112,000. 98.73% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Silence Therapeutics

Silence Therapeutics plc is a clinical-stage biotechnology company focused on the discovery and development of ribonucleic acid interference (RNAi) therapeutics. Leveraging its proprietary EnCore lipid nanoparticle delivery platform, the company aims to silence disease-causing genes in the liver and other tissues. Silence’s technology is designed to enhance targeted delivery of small interfering RNA (siRNA) molecules, with the goal of achieving durable therapeutic effects and improved safety profiles compared with traditional drug modalities.

The company’s lead product candidates include SLN360, an siRNA therapeutic designed to reduce lipoprotein(a) levels for cardiovascular risk reduction, and SLN124, aimed at treating hereditary hemochromatosis and beta-thalassemia by modulating iron metabolism.